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The other interesting thing about this thread is how strong opinions and convictions can be from people even when they obviously don't know very much about the subject in the first place.
I very much subscribe to the a statement made by a very wise man who said, " everyone is entitled to an opinion, but it had better be a learned one."
I find it very disturbing that people doing one form of hunting or another have to spend a great deal of time defending themselves to other hunters. Perhaps if people took the time to read and learn a bit about things before they spouted off about it we, as hunters, wouldn't be in the predicament we are in......world wide.
Hunters condemn other hunters all the time........bow hunters snub rifle hunters, traditional blackpowder enthusiasts snub in-line users, and the all time favorite.......meat hunters turn thumbs down on the dreaded 'trophy' hunter.
I for one would love to go on an elephant hunt for a big bull......and I would proudly display his tusks in my trophy room, but I too lack the funds. I have been lucky enough to hunt Africa and a lot of other places. It has taken a lot of effort and passing on other things that I deemed less important. To the elephant hunter, the tusks from the elephant are the same as the antlers from the whitetaiil hunter.
Remember endangered only applies to the specific area you are talking about..........some countries do not have a lot of elephants and perhaps they have had poaching problems. Others have more than enough elephants and need to keep their numbers in check with the available habitat. It's that simple and people spouting off about things they do not know anything about are often the ones that sway public sentiment and cause problems for countries that have legitimate wildlife management plans in place.
Their plans to attract foreign hunters and the much needed money it brings into the local economies are thwarted by the well intentioned but misinformed. In the end the losers are the local wildlife and the indigenous people.
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